Scribing device for doors



April 23, 1963 R. s. DALFE 3,08

SCRIBING DEVICE FOR DOORS Fi'led Sept; 24, 1962 INVENTOR F IG RAYMOND s. DALPE BY 7 ga \A ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,086,295 SCRIBING DEVICE FOR DOORS Raymond S. Dalpe, 2813 S.W. 14th St., Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Filed Sept. 24, 1962, Ser. No. 225,542 4 Claims. (Cl. 33-194) engage the opposite edge of the door to determine the degree of trimming of the door edge for fitment into the jamb opening.

The invention contemplates a clamping tool that is engaged over one edge of a door and with the opposite edge of the door being engaged into the opposite jamb opening and with the device embodying a yieldable frame that clamps against the jamb opening to maintain the opposite edge of the door into the opposite jamb and with the device being yieldably adjustable by spring means that supports the door against movement while the scribing tool is engaged against the jamb opening to form a mark upon the side of the door to indicate just how much the door must be trimmed in order to fit the opening.

The invention further contemplates a clamping device having adjustable strips fitted into the clamp whereby the device will fit doors of varying thicknesses.

Novel features of construction and operation of the device will be more clearly apparent during the course of the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings wherein has been illustrated a preferred form of the device and wherein like characters of reference are employed to denote like pants throughout the several figures.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a horizontal sectional view through a door and a pair of jamb members, showing the invention in use,

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary side elevation of the structure illustrated in FIGURE 1,

FIGURE3 is a side elevation of the clamp from the opposite side, and

FIGURE 4 is a horizontal section taken substantially on line 44 of FIGURE 3.

Referring specifically to the invention, there has been provided an inner U-shape frame 5 having side flanges 6 and 7, connected by a base 8. The flange 7 is relatively longer than the flange 6 and is slightly curved outwardly at 9 to facilitate the engagement of the device over the edge of a door, illustrated at 10. The flange 6 is also curved outwardly at 11 to also facilitate the engagement of the frame over the door. The frame is preferably formed of rigid non-flexible metallic stripping. A spacer strip, preferably formed of wood is indicated at 12 and is co-extensive with the flange 6. The spacer strip 12 is fixedly held with respect to the flange 6 by threaded screw 13 and with the screw 13 having a head 14 that is recessed into the inner face of the strip 12 as shown at 15. A wing nut 16 serves to clamp the strip 12 to the flange 6. 'The strip 12 constitutes an adjustable means whereby the device may be employed with doors of varying thicknesses.

Slidably engaged in overlapping relation to the flanges 6 and 7 is a second U-shape frame 17, having a head portion 18 and side flanges 19 and 20. The frame 17 is substantially identical in height with the frame 5. Means are provided to connect the frame 17 to the frame 5 in a slidable manner, comprising a screw 21 that is threaded into an opening of the frame 7 and that passes through an elongated slot 22 of the flange 20. The flange 19 is provided with a hooked end 23, while the flange 20 is provided with hooked end 24 and through the medium of the hooks, the

3,035,295 Patented Apr. 23, 1963 ice apertures 27 in a head 18 and adjustable nuts 28 are threadedly engaged with the ends of the rods outwardly of the head 18 and whereby to limit the movement of the frame 17 and 5 with respect to each other. The rods 25 carry compression springs 29 and with the springs jointly bearing against the head 8 and the head 18 to bias the frames apart. An angle plate 30 is connected to the flange 20 by a screw 31 and constitutes a stop that engages the jambrecess 32 of the door jambs 33.

In the use of the device, the door 10 is engaged into one recess 32 and the device is then forced over the marginal edge of the door and the hook 24 or the hook 23 cally with respect to its position with respect to the recess 32 of the jamb 33'thatconstitutes the amount of material to be removed from the door so that it will jointly engage into the recess 32 with suflicient freedom of swinging movement itself. The spacer strip 12 will obviously be removed when the device is engaged over a door of relatively thick dimension and the spacer strips may be varied in accordance with doors of lesser thickness. After the door has been scribed, it is removed and the clamp disengaged therefrom. The springs 29 and the angle plate 30 thus definitely hold the door in the opposite jamb opening against movement during the scribing operation. The angle plate 30 is preferably provided upon its face with a relatively thin pad of rubber or the like to prevent the marring of the door when the device is in use.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that a very novel door clamp has been provided to facilitate the scribing and fitment of a door into a jamb opening.

The device is simple in construction, is strong, durable and cheap to manufacture and provides a clamping tool that is of such dimensions that it will be capable of storage into the usual carpenters tool box and greatly simplifies the scribing of a door to a particular jamb opening, with a minimum of effort since the device is quickly and easily engaged with the marginal edge of the door and with the door engaged into an opposite jamb recess, the device is easily yieldably adjusted to cause the angle plate 30 engagement with the opposite recesses, such effectively holding the door against movement.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction shown, but that changes are contemplated as readily fall within the spirit of the invention as shall be determined by the scope of the subjoined claims.

Having described my invention what I claim is new and desire to receive by Letters Patent is:

1. A tool for holding a door in alignment with a door opening formed by door jambs and whereby to hold the door so that one edge may be scribed to indicate the amount to be trimmed off the door for fitment into the door opening, the tool comprising a pair of U-shaped frames having overlapping and slidable engagement with each other and with an inner frame defining a rectangular socket dimensioned to engage a marginal edge of the door, means to bias the two frames apart, an angled stop fixedly connected to one leg of the outer frame, means carried by the opposite legs of the outer frame whereby the frames may be manually shifted in opposed relation to the bias means when the inner frame has been engaged with the door and whereby the angled stop will engage the side of the door opening and to yieldably hold the opposite edge of the door against the opposite side of the door opening.

2. A clamping tool for holding a door in alignment with a door opening formed by door jambs and whereby to hold one edge of the door against one jamb and to support the door in overlapping relation to the opposite jamb and whereby to permit the opposite edge of the door to be scribed by a scribing tool to determine the amount of material to be removed from the door to permit lthe door to be engaged into the door opening, the tool embodying first and second U-shaped frame members that are in slidable overlapping relation to each other, the first frame member defining an elongated socket for engagement over the edge of the door, the second frame member having a guide slot in one leg and a guide screw extending through the slot to engage an adjacent leg of the first frame member and whereby the frames are guided with respect to each other, each of the frame members having a head portion, pins fixedly connected to the head portion of the first frame and having slidable engagement into apertures formed in the head of the second frame member, compression springs disposed upon the pins and bearing against the head portions of the frames and whereby to bias the frames apart, hook means carried by the leg portions of the second frame for manually shifting the second frame with respect to the first frame after it has been engaged with a door and whereby the tool may be activated from either side of the door, an angle stop fixed to a leg of the second frame for engagement with an inner face of the door opening and whereby the device constitutes a clamp for forcing the opposite edge of the door against the wall of the door opening to hold the door against shifting and to permit of a scribing tool to mark the opposite edge of the door to determine the amount of material to be removed so as to permit the door to freely engage into the door openmg.

3. The structure according to claim 2 wherein the free ends of the leg portions of the first frame are curved outwardly to facilitate the engagement of the device over the edge of the door to be trimmed, the legs of the first frame being spaced apart to slidably receive an edge of a door of conventional maximum thickness.

4. The structure according to claim 2 wherein one leg of the first frame is apentured adjacent its terminal end, a spacer block that is co-extensive with the last named leg and that is provided with a clamping screw that extends through the aperture and whereby to modify the socket to correspond to the doors of different thicknesses, the frame members being formed of metallic strips and with the strips having identical widths.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 810,489 Johnson Jan. 23, 1906 

1. A TOOL FOR HOLDING A DOOR IN ALIGNMENT WITH A DOOR OPENING FORMED BY DOOR JAMBS AND WHEREBY TO HOLD THE DOOR SO THAT ONE EDGE MAY BE SCRIBED TO INDICATE THE AMOUNT TO BE TRIMMED OFF THE DOOR FOR FITMENT INTO THE DOOR OPENING, THE TOOL COMPRISING A PAIR OF U-SHAPED FRAMES HAVING OVERLAPPING AND SLIDABLE ENGAGEMENT WITH EACH OTHER AND WITH AN INNER FRAME DEFINING A RECTANGULAR SOCKET DIMENSIONED TO ENGAGE A MARGINAL EDGE OF THE DOOR, MEANS TO BIAS THE TWO FRAMES APART, AN ANGLED STOP FIXEDLY CONNECTED TO ONE LEG OF THE OUTER FRAME, MEANS CARRIED BY THE OPPOSITE LEGS OF THE OUTER FRAME WHEREBY THE FRAMES MAY BE MANUALLY SHIFTED IN OPPOSED RELATION TO THE BIAS MEANS WHEN THE INNER FRAME HAS BEEN ENGAGED WITH THE DOOR AND WHEREBY THE ANGLED STOP WILL ENGAGE THE SIDE OF THE DOOR OPENING AND TO YIELDABLY HOLD THE OPPOSITE EDGE OF THE DOOR AGAINST THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE DOOR OPENING. 